Clutch.



W. E. ROE.

CLUTCH.

APPLICATION FILED ocT. 7, 1914.

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SI|IVI W. E. ROE.

CLUTCH.

APPLICATION FILED ocT.1. |914.

Patented Nov. 12, 1918.A

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CLUTCH.

APPLICATION FILED 001.7. |914.

Patented N ov. 12, 1918.

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WALTER E. ROE, OF MISHAWAKA, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR. TO DODGE MANUFACTURING-COMPANY,OF MISHAWAKA, INDIANA, A CORPORATION OF INDIANA.

CLUTCH.

`Specification of Letters Patent.

`Pateiiited Nov.. t2, MMS..

Application led October 7, 1914i. Serial No. 865,503.

To 7l whom t may Concern:

Be it known that XVM/rien E. Ron, citizen of the United States, residingat il'lisha waka. in the county of St. Joseph and State of indiana` hasinvented certain new and useful Iiiiprovenients in Clutches, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in clutches and it appertains moreespecially to the features pointed out in the annexed claims.

The purpose of my invention is to provide a clutch that has noprojections of any kind whatever from the rotating parts; that is dustproof; that self oiling; that overcomes any centrifugal tendency tothrow itself into action; that is compact, efficient and economical tomanufacture; that will not stick under the heaviest duty; one whosefrictional parts are simple and easily replaced; that has a maximumeffect with a minimum thrust; that insures a permanency vof alinement,extreme simplicity in assembling and ease of adjustment.

With these and other related ends in view I illustrate in theaccompanying drawings such instances of adaptation as will disclose thebroad features thereof without limiting myself to the specific detailsshown.

Figure l is a longitudinal elevation partly in section.

Fig. 2 is a right hand end elevation Lof Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a transverse section on line m/-m of Fig. l.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to the upper portion of Fig. l showing theclutch partly released.

Fig. 5 is'an elevation of a cut-off coupling adaptation. l

Figs. G and 7 are detached elevations in section of modified frictionelements.

ln the type of clutch instanced I amable to use various forms offriction elements,

interchangeably if desired so that the general clutch parts may bestandardized and the wearing parts adapted to the specific requirementsof different installations or the 'ariable demands of heavy or lightservice. The clutch is iiniquein having practically all of its rotatingparts concentric and annular in conformation so that the ent-ire clutchcan be disassembled by the removal of one part. all of which insures theproduction of a clutch at a minimum cost.

,ed large ones.

Many so called safety clutches` have small protruding parts which maketheir naine a delusion and a snare. for 1t is a well known fact that thesmallest projection is as dan# `that with my foi-m of clutch noextraneous shields 0f any kind are required and the clutch can beoperated in exposed situations eveniiiore safely than ordinary pulleys.The great. accessibility of the seveialparts constituting a clutch makesit easy to renew or exchange the friction elements to meet the demandsof low or high speed duty as well as variable services heretoforereferred to.

In clutches of this type where` obviously7 no projecting; parts areallowable, a self-oiling system to properly lubricate the rotativemember is desirable. Provision has been made for such a system andliabilities to leakage eliminated.

On a suitable shaft l a flanged abutting member 2 is rigidly secured bya key 3 in key way -l. Its extreme free end constitutes a tubularextension7 in that it is bored to a greater diameter than the shaft soas to adapt a standard member to varying sized shafts and also minimizethe amount of machining to be done in preparing the same for suchvariations. This is feasible because all the heavy angular stressesoccur in the plane of key 3. An annular flange 10 projects radiallyforming an inner flat face against which a friction element is made tooperate. This flange has a hub 8 forming a shoulder that limits endwisemovement of the free portion 20 of the clutch.

A second hub S) of smaller diameter joins onto 8 and it projectslongitudinally beyond the key 3 so as to terminate in an annular oilcatching groove 7 which joins perpendicular face 6 in practically aknife edge. A conical portion 5 leads from 6 to the meeting faces of theshaft and member 2. The purpose of 5 is to cause any oil that may travelalong the shaft to be sent by centrifugal forceyover vits conicalsurface and be projected along 6 against the inside of casing bricated.Annular groove 22 formed on an inner flange 21 of bell 2O directs anyoil which mav accumulate on 21 while the clutch is stationary. into oilchamber 58 and any excess of oil accumulating between 9 and the cone isthrown out centrifugally.

A. central friction disk 29 has a hub 30 formed thereon which has freeendwise movement on 2 but is held against independent rotation b v key13. This-'key also serves the same purpose for the clutch compressingmember 31 whose hub 31 slides on 2. The part 31 is substantial!)Y anannular ring with a recess 33 to ati'ord clearance for hub 30 and aradial projecting face 32, an external hub 3G, a weight reducing groove35 and a pair of ears 37 formed thereon. Key 13 carries it rotarily.Between 32 and 29 annular friction member 2b is placed and between 29and 1() another friction member 27 is held. These friction members aresubstantially ring shaped. They have free endwise movement on the innerface 26 of the annular projection 2-t of bell 20 but are held to rotatewith 21 by key As instanced in Fig. 1, parts 10. 29, 32 and 27 with 28are metal to metal. In Fig. (i thefriction member rings 2i'a and 28 holdseries of removable blocks 66 of wood, cork or the like in suitablegrid-like openings. the, entire clutching taking place between 10. .29,32 'and blocks 6G placed between them.- The central member 29 has a hubG9. An annular actuating ring 31 may be substantially the Sallie as thatshown in Fig. 1. Should other conditions-demand different frictionmembers they may also be used in the same c vlindrical projection 21subject to ke v 25 which similarly serves all interchanges. The frictionmembers 27a and 28n of I4 ig. T have attached thereto fiber or similarfaces (SS, being held thereon b v suit able dowels (3T or otherfastenings. In this instance central member 29 also has a hub 69 whichis a substantial counterpart of that shown in Fig. 6.

The compression member 3l slides to and fro on sleeve 2 the -slightdistance required to engage and disengage the clutch parts, beingcarried rotarily by key 13 which is solidly embedded in key way 12formed on 2. This action is brought about through rollers 4T engagingsurfaces 40 and +11 While connected with ears 37 through links v14, apair of which are pivoted lto ears 37 by pins t5, holding roller 47between them. on pin 4G. (Fig. 3). Sleeve 3S is held in alinement bymeans of flange 43 sliding on the outer face 59 of conical abutment 49.It has an exterior Bange 42 by means of which the two-part ring 53, itsinternal groove and `adial pins 54 are moved lengthwise of the shaft byears 55 of the forked shifter arm 56 pivoted on an adjacent fulcrum. Slit ring 53 has enlargements 61 in which c mping screws 60 are placed tohold the same on (See Fig. 2).

In order that the movements of rollers 17 on cone 10 may be imparted to31. the rollers are caused to engage cone surfaceflS of the abutment 19so that as cone l() forces them inwardly in a radial direction, the moreabrupt cone 48 forces them endwise making a veritable. toggle-joint. Onreversing the movements of arm 5G sleeve 38 is withdrawn freeing rollers17 froinradial restraint on account of which the compression stresses ofthe friction' parts react and cause the rollers to move outward alongconical face 4S, releasing the clutch. The weight of the rollers andlinks is enough so that they will act, similarly to a centrifugalgovernor and prevent the clutch from set ting itself into engagement. Inorder that the dimensional correlation of sleeve 38, rollers 17,compression member 31 and conical abutment 49 may be quickly andpositively established the latter is held on the extension 2 b v screwthreads 11, thus admitting of a most delicate endwise adjustment. 1t islocked in position by set screw 52 abutting soft metal plug 51 whichengages threads 11 without injuring them. Externail)Y of screw 52.' thehole (35 is enlarged and without threads to conform =to three othersimilar holes located around the periphery of fiange 50 at 90O apart toacco1n- Inodate a spanner wrench used in rotating the abutmentwhileadjusting its endwise position. The flange 5() serves to prevent theaccidentalmisplacement of the sleeve 33.

It will be seen that the removal of abutment -r19,at once releases allof the clutch elements, none of which collapse or become disarranged,for instant change so that reassembling is in effect just as easv asdismemberment.

In self contained clutches it is ver)Y desirable to have the same dustproof so that none will enter the bearing area of the continuouslyrevolving part. of the clutch. This is accomplished by the broken jointsof the compression. friction and driving members of the mechanism. Fordust to enter the oil chamber 5S is practically impos sible as it wouldhave to travel past all of the various clutch faces. A felt washer ma vbe placed between collar 62 and hub 11 sb as to exclude dust at thispoint, or the same may be sealed otf'externally in any suitable manner.

A suitable self-oiling s vstem will be found desirable in this type'ofclutch. This is accomplished by putting a plug (il in a threaded openingformed in`I the flange 19. which admits of lubricant being introducedinto chamber 58 when the parts are standing still. The oil is carriedonto the shaft bv a well known type of ring oiler 5T which plays onshaft l between hub 15 and face ti,

' tially equivalent construction.

Lesage@ or any system of paddles or wings may be used instead, forinstance Asuch asare shown in my application Serial .#2891 filed Jan.18, 19155. rThe bell :20 floats on shaft 1 between collar 62 held by setscrew 63 and hub 8. Any desired form of oil 'grooves may be formed onthe inner face of 14. The dotted arrows of Fig. 4 show oil traverse whenthe parts are standing still and the full arrows when in motion.

As shown` part 2 does the driving-and part 2O is intermittently driven.Should thisortler be reversed then 20 would be keyed to the shaft and 2float freely between suitable collars except when clutched to 20. Thetransposition of internal oil grooves from 14 to 2 would constitute asubstan- The clutch features are not limited to the specific useinstanced in Figs. l and 6 but they may be as efliciently utilized forcut-off couplings by having the hub 14 secured to shaft 17 by key 18.The centers may be kept in close alinement by the projectingend 1G ofshaft 1 entering' into hub 15 (see Fig. 5).

The locking,a feature is important because it automatically locks thetoggle parts and holds them while in action and yet is held free, ifused as a driver, by the centrifugal play of the toggle links wheneverthe clutch members are disengaged. Should the extension 2 with itsattached parts be used as the driven member the parts will of course beinactive when disengaged because they are not in rotation. The lockingis equally effective regardless -of any driver or driven relationholding the clutch against accidental release whatever condition ofrapid vibration it may be subjected to. The range of locking is largewithout hampering the clutching' action which is brought about by thecoperation of parallel face 41 and the cone 48 so as to hold rollers 47between them. As soon as conical surfaces 40 and 48 coact on rollers 47the clutch is being released if 38 moves to the right. A contrawisemovement of conical sleeve 38 sets the clutch. See arrows of Figs. 1 and4.

1f desired the annular portion Q4 of bell 20 may be extended so as tooverlap 38 when it is in its cxtreme Open position and the diameter of38 may be increased so as to allow only a working clearance between itand face 26. This clearance might be sealed olf in any desired mannerwith anv suitable packing'if found expedient. Tliis would close all openrecesses and leave,- the outside substantially cylindrical.

Should part 20 be used asthe driver then the oil rinpr 57 would lift theoil just the same as when part 2 is the driver. ln either case theextension of the shaft through the driven member insures exact alinementwithout depending on any of the casings interior' surfaces of muchlarger hold the ring from rotation whereby radius and greater frictionaleffect. This insures the highest possible working etliciency.

ll'h'at I claim is,

1.. A. continuously rotating driving,r inember. an intermittently drivenmember, an axial support for both members, clutch parts between the twomembers, means for engaging and disengaging such parts comprising anabutting flange having; a. tubular extension integral therewith, acompression ring; slidable on the extension having a hub. ears attachedto the radial face of the hub, links pivoted in said ears, an externalbearing face formed on the hub. an adjustable coni cal member secured tothe tubular extension having an external bearing face thereon, a sleeveslidable on both bearing' faces having conical and parallel surfacesformed on the inside thereof, rollers carried by the free ends of thelinks, an external flange formed on said sleeve, a two-part ringengaging the flange, projections from such ring, means for engaging theprojections adapted to the sleeve may also be moved to and fro axiallyon its bearing faces so as to cause the free ends of the links to moveradially through the engagement of the internal conical surfaces withthe rollers carried by the links thereby actuating the clutch parts toconnect the rotatingr and rotative members,v lock the acting means, andsubsequently re lease the parts as desired.

2. ln clutches, a rotating member, a rotative member, clutch partsplaced therebetween, an abutting member placed on one side of suchparts, a compression member operable a ainst the other face of theclutch parts, a tu ular extension integral with the abutting memberforming a support for the compression member, an annular conicaladjusting abutment having an integral flange formed thereon at its outerend, means for holding,` the same on the extension, a 'hollow sleeveslidable on the abutment and the conipressing member said sleevehaving),r internally formed parallel and conical surfaces, a pluralityof links'pivotally secured to the compression member, rollers attachedto their free ends, adapted to engage both conical surfaces or a conicaland parallel surface simultaneously', and means for axially moving thesleeve to effect, the engagement, locking,r and release of the. clutchparts.

3. In clutches, the combination with a rotative driven member and arotating driving member, a tubular extensiontherefrom, of a plurality ofrollers, a plurality of links pivoted at one end, for holding therollers, a clutching part to which the. links are p1v. oted, a slidableexternal sleeve movable axially havingr an internal conical surfaceadapted to engage the rollers, a conical abut.- ment on the tubularextension adapted to simultaneously engage the rollers, whereby throughthe endwise movementl of the sleeve the rollers and links aresimultaneously moved radially and longitudinally to effect t-heclutdhing, locking and releasing of the rotatable members.

l. n clutches. a. rotating member, a ro- I tative member, clutch partsprojecting radially from both members, an abutting flange on one sideand a compression member on the other side of such parts adapted to haveendwise movement toward the flange to cause the clutch parts to engageand disengage as desired` a plurality of links pivoted on thecompression member, rollers carried by their free ends, an annularabutment having a conical inner end, means for preventing free endwisemovement thereof, a slidable external sleeve having internally7 placedand adjatently formed parallel and conical snrfaces adapted tosuccessively engage the rollers to lhold them against the abutment., andmeans for moving the sleeve endwise whereby the free ends of the linksare shifted radially and the compression member endwise to connect anddisconnect the clutch. lilotatable clutch members in alinement with eachother, a plurality7 of friction rings interposed between a plurality offlanged compression parts, means for holding the same between the clutchmembers, an adjustable abutment having a conical inner end supported byone of the members, an axially placed sleeve having an internal cone anda tabular part simultaneously slidable on one of the compression membersand the abutment whereby its interior is protected against the influx ofdust, etc., a plurality of links pivoted to the compression member theirfree ends being held in different radial positions with-respect to thecenter of clutch rotation by t-he cordinate action of the cones and thetubular part of the sleeve whereby as it is given endwise movement theclutch is thrown into or out, of action.

(S. ln clutches, a suitable shaft. a rotatable member secured thereon,another rotating member free from said shaft. means for connecting anddisconnecting the two members as desired, an oil chamber in one of saidmembers, mains for automatically applying the oil to the, wearingsurfaces, annular external grooves on projecting hubs of said membersand internal conical surfaces formed therein wherebythe passage oflubricant to the clutch parts is controlled.

T. In clutches a suitable sha ft, a rotatable member secured thereon,another member free from said shaft but having bearing thereon, meansfor connecting and disconnecting the two members as desired, an voilchamber i'n one of said members, means` for automati -ally supplying oilfrom the chamber lto the bearing. in combination with internal cones andadjacent annular grooves formed on the inner surfaces of the secured andfree-members whereby an excess of lnbricant is kept from theclutching-surfaces of the nielnbers and is automatic-all)Y returned tothe oil chamber.

8. In clutches` a shaft common to all thel clutch members` a loosecarrier member comprising a hub. a flange and an annular projecting rimsaid member being free to rotate independently of the shaft, an abuttingmember comprising a flange and an integral sleeve the flange beingplaced adjacent the flange of the carrier member said abutting memberbeing positivel \Y secured to the shaft, friction plates carried b v thefree member, removable wearing surfacesl carried by the plates saidplates being yfree to slide cndwise while being carried rotaril)Y insideof and by the annular rim of the carrier member, an internal compressionmember between. the friction plates. slidable on the sleeve and rotatedtherewith. an external compression member also slidable on the saidsleeve and rotatable therewith` said member having an external hub` anadjustably fixed conically faced collar secured to the sleeve near itsextremity` a second sleeve slidable on the collar and the hub of theexternal compression member.1 and inter'- acting` means between thecollar and said member inclosed by and operable through the secondsleeve, adapted on the to and fro movement of said sleeve to actuatc theexternal compression member to open and close t'he clutch.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WALTER E. ROE. lVitnesses:

W. B. Hosronn, T. H. NORMAN.

